Done well, gamification provides context, calls-to-action and a sense of meaningful work to employees – but the core question remains. How can companies get to the “gamification done well” phase? Some of it lies in good gamification design, using sound principles within the context of an organization or role and the desired employee behaviors. But some of it lies in using gamification analytics properly – and this is the core of this blog post.

What’s all the rage in event and conference management? Gamification. Event managers are told that an event without gamification isn’t done properly. They are told that using gamification in events makes the numbers for attendance, networking and that their social shares will hit the roof.

Is this true?

This post hopes to bring some order into the question of what is gamification for an event – and what real value can be derived from it.

When you launch an enterprise gamification project, you have to create credible and repeated communications with employees.

That isn’t bad news. You should always consider your enterprise gamification projects as an opportunity to communicate with employees about your organization’s goals, rules of conduct, expectations, best practices and knowledge base. This communication is both informative (make sure everyone plays according to the same rules) but it is also habit forming (always enter data into the CRM once you’ve completed a call). If you’re lucky, it can even impact corporate culture.

The Stanford “marshmallow” test is a famous experiment conducted in the 1960s and 1970s. Its purpose was to measure preschoolers’ ability to delay gratification. The experiment, conducted by psychologists Walter Mischel and Ebbe Ebbesen, consisted of presenting a child with two options: get a reward immediately or a get a larger one later.

A child could receive one marshmallow (or another favorite treat – a cookie or pretzel) immediately, or, the child could get two marshmallows later. The two marshmallows were given only if the child waited for 15-20 minutes to pass, seated alone in a room with a table on which stood a plate with the two marshmallows and a bell. The child could ring the bell to call the researcher back into the room before the allotted time. If the child managed to wait the entire time, they got the two marshmallows. If they called the researcher, they could have just one. BUT SOMETIMES EATING THE MARSHMALLOW MAKES SENSE….

To give you a good sense of the project phases of an enterprise gamification project, we’ve decided to share our own project plans and charts. You can use them as a reference point for any gamification project you choose to implement, since it outlines the main phases in implementing a gamification project.

The typical project, from beginning to actual launch should take 2-5 weeks, depending on the complexity of the process.

In 2009, Foursquare launched a location based social network that allowed you to “check-in” at various venues, turning “life into a game”. The service was initially limited to certain metro areas, but after it opened, it reached 10 million users, which enabled the company to raise $ 50 M in 2011 at a valuation of $ 600 M. Foursquare was a hit.

One of the core drivers behind the craze to check-in using Foursquare and not competing services was Foursquare’s use of gamification.

As is the popular custom these days, I too was challenged to have a bucket of ice water thrown over my head. The Ice Bucket Challenge, sometimes called the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, is an activity involving dumping a bucket of ice water on one’s head or donating to the ALS Association in the United States. The challenge dares nominated participants to be filmed having a bucket of ice water poured on their heads.

Not one to back down in the face of a challenge, even the kind to require a change of clothing, a bucket was quickly located and filled with bags of ice and… cue the camera!

So while I was being submerged in ice cold water, rethinking my whole prepared-to-take-on-any-challenge-that-might-come-my-way strategy for life, I came to realize the power of social media when it is combined with gaming elements.